Dark-energy equation of state: how far can we go from \Lambda?

By studying the present cosmological data, particularly on CMB, SNeIA and LSS, we find that the future fate of the universe, for simple linear models of the dark energy equation-of-state, can vary between the extremes of (I) a divergence of the scale factor in as little as 7 Gyr; (II) an infinite lifetime of the universe with dark energy dominant for all future time; (III) a disappearing dark energy where the universe asymptotes as $t \to \infty$ to $a(t) \sim t^{2/3}$ {\it i...

We study the evolution of the dark energy equation of the state parameter without tying ourselves to any specific cosmological model or parametrization except spatial homogeneity, isotropy, and flatness leading to a flat Friedmann-Lema\^itre-Robertson-Walker (FLRW) metric. Instead, we rely on actual observational data to guide our analysis. This is the first study in which we combine the cosmological background and the growth observations to reconstruct the equation of the st...

Dark energy constraints have forced viable alternatives that differ substantially from a cosmological constant Lambda to have an equation of state w that evolves across the phantom divide set by Lambda. Naively, crossing this divide makes the dark energy gravitationally unstable, a problem that is typically finessed by unphysically ignoring the perturbations. While this procedure does not affect constraints near the favored cosmological constant model it can artificially enha...

Under the assumption that cold dark matter and dark energy interact with each other through a small coupling term, $Q$, we constrain the parameter space of the equation of state $w$ of those dark energy fields whose variation of the field since last scattering do not exceed Planck's mass. We use three parameterizations of $w$ and two different expressions for $Q$. Our work extends previous ones.

Using a specific model for the expansion rate of the Universe as a function of scale factor, it is demonstrated that the equation of state of the dark energy cannot be determined uniquely from observations at redshifts $z\lesssim{\rm a few}$ unless the fraction of the mass density of the Universe in nonrelativistic particles, $\Omega_M$, somehow can be found independently. A phenomenological model is employed to discuss the utility of additional constraints from the formation...

We derive a model of dark energy which evolves with time via the scale factor. The equation of state $\omega=(1-2\alpha)/(1+2\alpha)$ is studied as a function of a parameter $\alpha$ introduced in this model. In addition to the recent accelerated expansion, the model predicts another decelerated phase. The age of the universe is found to be almost consistent with observation. In the limiting case, the cosmological constant model, we find that vacuum energy gravitates with a g...

We explore the equation of state (EoS) for dark energy $w_{\mathrm{DE}}$ in modified gravitational theories to explain the current accelerated expansion of the universe. We explicitly demonstrate that the future crossings of the phantom divide line of $w_{\mathrm{DE}}=-1$ are the generic feature in the existing viable $f(R)$ gravity models. Furthermore, we show that the crossing of the phantom divide can be realized in the combined $f(T)$ theory constructed with the exponenti...

Is Dark Energy justified as an alternative to the cosmological constant $\Lambda$ in order to explain the acceleration of the cosmic expansion ? It turns out that a straightforward dimensional analysis of Einstein equation provides us with clear evidences that the geometrical nature of $\Lambda$ is the only viable source to this phenomenon, in addition of the application of Ockham's razor principle. This contribution is primarily a review of the main stream in the interpretat...

Entropy bounds render quantum corrections to the cosmological constant $\Lambda$ finite. Under certain assumptions, the natural value of $\Lambda$ is of order the observed dark energy density $\sim 10^{-10} {\rm eV}^4$, thereby resolving the cosmological constant problem. We note that the dark energy equation of state in these scenarios is $w \equiv p / \rho = 0$ over cosmological distances, and is strongly disfavored by observational data. Alternatively, $\Lambda$ in these s...

We explore the cosmological constraints on the parameter w_dm of the dark matter barotropic equation of state (EoS) to investigate the "warmness" of the dark matter fluid. The model is composed by the dark matter and dark energy fluids in addition to the radiation and baryon components. We constrain the values of w_dm using the latest cosmological observations that measure the expansion history of the Universe. When w_dm is estimated together with the parameter w_de of the ba...